My girlfriend's father is a car guy. His current show car is a 96 Vette convertible hard top that is probably cleaner than the day it rolled out of the factory.
He took a turn for the worse last winter, with the Parkinson's taking its toll, and he spent most of the winter and spring a bit confused. He knows that his short-term memory is shot even on a good day.
But his family suggested that we could go to a car show, and for a while, for a magical day, he was his old self again. He got out, walked around without his walker, rolled around on the floor, and got in and out of the 'Vette as he tried to make it ready to show again.
I got the call when the batter was dead, and while he needed help removing that battery (seriously, take off the side of the fender?!?) he certainly knew his way to the parts store. The car fired over when the new battery was put in, and he offered to take me a ride. I reminded him that "the women folk" had banned him from driving, but that didn't deter him. We took off, first gently, then with him showing me how the magical third gear in that car felt as we went 60 mph on narrow Kentucky backroads that probably had a 30 mph limit. He was in his glory.
I had to leave to go to work after the ride (admittedly a bit more shaken than when the pro drivers take me around speedways!). Later that day something happened. He got confused, he fell, and he hasn't been lucid since. I might very well have spent the last great day that he'll ever have with him, certainly the last time he'll drive the Vette. I'm embarrassed, and flattered, and honored.
_________________ *************** Geek49203 aka Tim Wohlford Louisville, KY Hayes front, S10 +2 rear, Lalo body.
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